Tag: fridge

Betting that within a few years every appliance we own will be hooked up to the internet, Nokia has announced plans for something called Home Control Centre. It’s basically software that will let you control everything in your home from your mobile device, from the heating to the toaster.

I know, we’ve all been there – gone out with some toast in the toaster, and forgotten that you actually wanted it on browning level three, rather than browning level five.

More seriously, though, this also has energy saving implications. You’ll be able to monitor energy usage from your mobile, and switch off anything that you don’t need remotely. Plus there’s a big convenience factor – preheat your oven 15 minutes before you arrive home, so you can just stick dinner straight in.

The only definite that Nokia has announced is some carbon footprint monitoring technology, from European energy firm RWE. That will use Wi-Fi enabled thermostats on each radiator. Nokia are promising to show this off in December at its annual Nokia World Conference. I wouldn’t be surprised if we heard a fair bit more about the broader too then, too.

With rocketing energy prices and the pressure to be “green” in everything you do, I thought it’d be fun – and hopefully educational – to start a series of videos looking at ways we can all be more energy efficient around our homes and offices.

To kick thinks off, I take a look as the massive (white) elephant in the room – the always-on electricity sponge that is the household refrigerator. Do we really need access to cold cheese 24 hours a day? Or is it just a conspiracy by the electricity companies to keep their shareholders happy?

Internet fridges, they’re THE FUTURE! Maybe. Or not. However cynical you are about connected kitchens, you can’t deny that Whirlpool is putting a lot of effort into the idea, with its centralpark technology. It’s basically about attaching gadgets to your fridge door, with a series of new ones announced here at CES.

Of course you do, you 21st-century caffeine addict. The Whirlpool 20RI D4 Espresso is due to go on sale early next year, and offers generous fridge and freezer capacity, along with an espresso coffee machine embedded in the door.

There were probably more technologically advanced fridge-freezers on show at the LG launch Alex attended last night, but this was the Blingiest Fridge Ever, so it had to be featured (plus there were no fridges with LCD screens on display yet, sadly). Just in case the clamouring crowd of fridge worshippers makes her spiel hard to hear, the key words are these: Swarovski bling…